View full sizeChuck Crow, PD"This is the best job you can have," Mychel Thompson says of the NBA. "This is my dream. I'm honored to be here. I'm just trying to stay ready."

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- Many see little correlation between big-time pro sports and the real world. Hardly a surprise, given the disparity in weekly paychecks.

Then again, most don't give consideration to where athletes like Cavaliers guard Mychel Thompson spend so many games, sitting at the ends of benches, their tomorrows -- like their contracts -- not guaranteed.

It's why Thompson's father, Mychal, a former NBA player, dispenses real-world wisdom to a son who had played just two minutes in the Cavs' first 18 games.

"I told him you have to treat every day like another job interview," Mychal Thompson said. "Every day at practice he has to convince his coaches and his teammates he deserves to be there. He has to be a professional and he has to be prepared for when his opportunity comes."

Mychel Thompson's chance finally arrived on Sunday night and he grabbed it with steady hands and a steely gaze. Injuries and illness at the shooting guard position forced the 23-year-old undrafted free agent into action in the fourth quarter of the Cavaliers' comeback win in Boston.

He performed so well that coach Byron Scott gave the rookie his first career start Tuesday in the Cavaliers' 93-90 loss to the Celtics. Thompson contributed eight points and four assists in 31 minutes, helping to hold Boston's Ray Allen to 12 points.

Teammates were thrilled for him. Scott praised his composure and effort in both games, even hinting he might earn a second start Friday as the Cavaliers travel to Orlando.

But this is an uncertain time for Thompson and his ilk as all contracts become guaranteed on Feb.10. While his non-guaranteed deal of $473,604 hardly puts the club in a salary-cap crunch, teams like to have roster flexibility with an eye toward the March 15 trade deadline.

What does it mean to Thompson? Perhaps nothing. Or, maybe another job interview with another team in two weeks' time. Thompson, Alonzo Gee and Samardo Samuels are the only Cavaliers without guaranteed deals.

"This is the best job you can have," said Thompson, who played four seasons at Pepperdine. I'm coming in here with a great attitude and trying to get better.

"This is the NBA, this is my dream. I'm honored to be here. I'm just trying to stay ready."

His father is a former No. 1 overall pick in 1978 who won two NBA titles with Scott as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. His brother Klay, the No. 14 pick of the Golden State Warriors, is averaging 6.7 points and had a nice performance in a Jan. 17 win over the Cavaliers.

"He played well," Mychel Thompson said of his brother's 14-point outing. "I was giving people tips on how to guard him. If he's open he can shoot the ball."

Mychel Thompson talks about his first NBA start

The Thompson siblings are tight -- there's also a third brother, Trayce, who plays baseball in the Chicago White Sox organization. But in some ways the Cavaliers reserve guard has more in common with a teammate like Gee.

A season ago, the versatile swingman was bouncing from franchise to franchise. Now, he's the Cavaliers' super sub, who Scott said Wednesday is a legitimate candidate for the league's most improved player. Gee just kept working at his game, adding to his resume and making him a good example for Thompson.

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Scott likes Thompson's basketball acumen, size (6-6) and his defensive bent. The youngster's calm also caught Scott's attention as he put him into Sunday's game and asked him to guard one of the NBA's best long-range shooters in Allen.

"I just kind of stared at him for a second as he took his jacket off," Scott said. "It wasn't one of those 'Oh, my God,' [looks]. I've seen that look before [in players] and after I've seen it I'm saying 'Oh my God.'

"I can't remember the last time I put a player in a situation like that and saw him play so well."

The NBA might be best known as the star-driven league of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. But beyond the human bar codes in sneakers are the Mychel Thompsons, players looking for the next summons from the other end of the bench.

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